English Learners Left Behind: Standardized Testing as Language Policy (Bilingual Education & Bilingualism Book 65)

Not only is this book recommended by my professor, Teresa McCarty, but also this book is very insightful. It provides us with a very detailed account of the development of high-stakes testing, especially in the state of New York - thanks to the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) policy. This policy highlights the notion of accountability that is demanded from schools, particularly teachers, with the main indicator of being "accountable" being the English test scores, among other standardized exam scores. Cut-off points whereby students can be considered "passing" are ridiculously unrealistic for English language learners (ELL) - i.e., those whose first language is not English.Many countries around the globe, including my home country in the Southeast Asian region, seem to follow suit on this accountability bandwagon. Sigh. English being one of the components of standardized testing, I wonder how students in remote areas can benefit from having their English proficiency tested. Not that English may not be important for these students, but I doubt that the test items have been tailored to reflect the benefit of English in such areas where exposure to English is very restricted.

Amazing book with truthful information. A really eye opener, that shows a clear picture of our current education system.